Forum Lane

The Lane County Public Service Building, site of Harris Hall. The City of Eugene is currently leasing space in the building while City Hall is reconstructed.

On January 30, after six hours of public testimony and debate, the Board of County Commissioners instructed Liane Richardson, County Administrator, to provide draft language for a ballot measure to fund public safety.  The vote was 5-0.

Debate centered around the amount of the levy, which would be assessed as property taxes, the services to be funded should the levy pass and accountability of spending to assure the public that the money would be spent as they intended.

Draft language was provided on Friday February 1:

Caption:

For  Jail and Critical Youth Services, a five-year levy

Question:

Shall Lane County restore jail beds and critical youth treatment services by levying $0.55 per $1000 assessed valuation, commencing  2013.  This measure may cause property taxes to increase more than three percent?

 
Summary:

Lane County proposes a five-year spending plan that would allow Sheriff Tom Turner to utilize tax revenue and open, at a minimum, 255 existing jail beds within the County Jail.  The revenue would further be dedicated to youth services for juvenile offenders, including counseling, secure treatment and detention services.  On an annual basis, the Sheriff will produce an audited report to ensure accountability.  Beginning 2013, the Lane County property tax rate will temporarily increase by $.55 per $1000 assessed valuation;  thus for the median home in Lane County, valued at $151,000, the annual tax payment to Lane County would increase by $83.  After five years, this tax rate automatically sunsets, unless re-approved by Lane County voters.  This revenue will effectively halt the revolving door at the jail for violent offenders and enable the Sheriff to hold those criminals for their entire sentences.  It will ensure that more of our community’s youth offenders receive treatment services.  The funds must be placed into a restricted special revenue fund specifically earmarked for jail and youth services.  The funds must be placed into a restricted special revenue fund specifically earmarked for jail and youth services.  The estimated tax which would be raised by this levy are 2013/14-$14,973,375; 2014/15-$15,272,843; 2015/16-$15,578,299; 2016/17-$15,889,865 and 2017/18 $16,207,663 for a total of $77,922,045.

There will be a public hearing to listen to interested parties’ opinions of the consideration Tuesday evening, February 5 beginning at 5:30 at Harris Hall in the Lane County Public Service Building.

The Board of Commissioners will then consider adopting, amending or rejecting the proposal.

The following is information from Lane County’s Communication Manager:

In order to involve the community in decision-making process; Lane County Commissioners will hold two public hearings on funding the county’s public safety structure.

Data from a recent public safety funding survey will be presented and community members will have an opportunity to give feedback.
“The board is aggressively looking at both short term and long term solutions and are taking this step by step,” said Board of Commissioners Chair Sid Leiken. “What it comes down to is what the citizens want, that’s why we’ve just done a comprehensive survey and are holding these hearings.”
The first public hearing begins at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29 in Harris Hall. The session will begin with a presentation to the Board of Commissioners followed by community input.  A second hearing is set for 9 a.m. the following morning 9 a.m., Jan. 30 at the same location. Following the public hearings on Wednesday, Jan 30, the Board will deliberate on the matter and may take action.

Crime is on the rise in Lane County while in virtually every other corner of Oregon, it’s on the decline.  Despite this rise, jail bed capacity in Lane County is less than 20% of the state average and an even smaller fraction of the national average.

The Board of Commissioners is considering whether a temporary, dedicated, property tax levy is the first step to addressing the immediate crisis, while Lane County continues to work on a long-term plan for a sustainable public safety structure.

Speakers will be asked to limit their public testimony to 3 minutes or less per person. Community members who wish to convey more information can submit their testimony to the Board in writing and then briefly summarize their views before commissioners. Those who attend as part of an organized group should consider appointing a spokesperson to address the Board on their behalf.
Those who are unable to attend either public hearing can send their written comments to the Lane County Board of Commissioners, 125 E. Eighth Ave., Eugene, 97401 or via email to publiccomment@co.lane.or.us. The Board would like to receive all comments before or during the hearings.

Any discussion of public safety and funding for public safety in Lane County has to include, if not start with, services for youth.

The John Serbu Youth Campus at 2727 Martin Luther King Boulevard has as its centerpiece the building that many call  the Juvenile Detention Center.  The actual name for the building is the Juvenile Justice Center.

Lane County Juvenile Justice Center at the John Serbu Youth Campus.

If you were to tour the building you’d find a state of the art facility.  It contains all of the space and components necessary for operating a fully functioning and effective Youth Center.  But you’d also find that more than two thirds of the building is empty.  Empty offices, empty detention “pods,” empty classrooms, an empty (usually) gymnasium, empty hallways…

Not all the building is vacant.  Two court rooms on the second floor are regularly used, and the existing Youth Services administration and staff are present.  Notably, the commercial-style commissary is used to provide catered food for public events–the staff works with kids who not only provide excellent food but are learning all aspects of the food service industry.

Lane County voters passed a bond to build the facility which was opened in 2000.  Money to actually operate the center has gradually gone away as O&C timber harvest dollars disappeared, leaving a beautiful, almost empty building.  While the recently consolidated professional staff is doing miracles with the available budget resources, visiting the campus only serves to fuel dreams of how kids can be helped to avoid deeper involvement in the adult justice system.  Keeping kids out of trouble and jail.

While nobody is predicting any form of sudden influx of money to operate the building, the opportunity to use the facility creatively to help juvenile service may be real.

For instance, leasing some of the office space either to other government agencies or even possibly to private businesses could infuse some dollars directly into Youth Services.  One wing I toured had a dozen or more empty, clean and serviceable offices–complete with unused conference rooms and staff facilities–that are begging occupancy.

Another example is the “Salmon Pod,” named for the color of the walls.

The "Salmon Pod" at the Lane County Juvenile Justice Center

The pod has 32 beds, each in lockable rooms.  It also has a classroom, an exercise yard and never fully-used day use areas.  The commissary is nearby, down the hall, and separate entry and exit are built in.  It has secure access to the court rooms on the second floor.  While it most likely will never be used to house juvenile offenders, just touring it evokes thoughts of how it could be used to generate income for the department.  And make the streets safer.

The stated vision of the department rings true:  “The purpose of the department of Youth Services is to protect the public by reducing delinquency and improving juveniles’ ability to live productively in our community.”

Finding ways to use the facility effectively and efficiently will not only serve to use the bond money spent on the building but could also provide an influx of additional money to help the department better serve its vision.

News You Can Use, reprinted from a post by Sgt. Carrie Carver, Lane County Sheriff”s Department

When You See Lights, Pull Over Please!

The Lane County Sheriff’s Office wants to remind community members to yield to emergency vehicles, including police and fire units.  Lane County continues to be one of the top ranking counties in the state for traffic fatalities. We can help emergency responders get to where they are going by maintaining awareness of our surroundings and pulling over in a safe manner to allow emergency vehicles to pass.

When you see an emergency vehicle approaching:

•         Look and signal before you yield to an emergency vehicle.

•         Pull over to the right hand lane or shoulder and STOP!  Never yield to the left.

•         Do not stop in an intersection or lane of travel.

•         Remain stopped until the emergency vehicle has passed. In many situations, multiple emergency vehicles are responding.  After the first emergency vehicle has passed, look for additional vehicles before re-entering the roadway.

(Running red lights and ignoring emergency vehicles seems to be epidemic).

I join the Lane County Sheriff’s Office in wishing you a safe New Year!

Recent polling shows Eugene residents agree with the downtown public safety zone.

View the polling data here.

Here are more statistics relating to the release of prisoners from the Lane County jail due to lack of funding.  The graphs clearly show the spike in releases from the closing of jail beds in June.

Click here to see the report.

Here are more statistics relating to the release of prisoners from the Lane County jail due to lack of funding.  The report shows that in the week ending 9/09/2012 there were 93 inmates released to due to the lack of jail funding.

Click here to view the report.

Below is the Lane County Sheriff’s Monthly report.  This report highlights current public safety information and crime prevention techniques. It also contains important information about the current financial situation the Sheriff’s office is facing as well as the recent release of inmates.

View the newsletter here.

With the Lane County Sheriff’s office taking the brunt of budget cuts, Sheriff Tom Turner is reaching out to Lane County citizens for support.

Date: Wednesday, September 19th, 6-8pm

Location: Department of Youth Services Carmichael Room

2727 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd    Eugene, Oregon

Read the news release here.

Here are more statistics relating to the release of prisoners from the Lane County jail due to lack of funding.  The report shows that in the week ending 8/26/2012 there were 85 prisoners released to due to the lack of jail funding.

Click here to view the report.